Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has joined BT Sport and ITV as a pundit ahead of the new Premier League season and Champions League campaign.

Scholes was a surprise choice of Sky Sports pundit for Manchester United's clash with Arsenal last season and earned rave reviews from viewers alongside former United team-mate Gary Neville.

However, the ex-England international, who rarely gave TV interviews as a player, has now decided to become a pundit for Sky Sports's rivals BT Sport where he has signed a four-year deal.

Scholes will join other former and current United stars working for BT Sport including Michael Owen, Owen Hargreaves and Rio Ferdinand, who is now with QPR. Robin van Persie is an ambassador for the channel.

Grant Best, Senior Channel Executive Producer, BT Sport, said: “Paul has proved himself to be a forthright and astute pundit since he hung up his boots.

“His recent opinions have been every bit as tenacious as his tackling on the pitch. It is fantastic that we have been able to sign up a legend like Paul to offer a unique insight, based on a record of consistent success at the highest level of the game.”

BT Sport has also announced it has signed a deal for up to four exclusively live matches a week from the Portuguese Primeira Liga. BT Sport also shows exclusively live matches from Germany's Bundesliga, France's Ligue1, Italy's Serie A and the Scottish Professional Football League.

BT Sport starts the new Premier League season with exclusive live coverage of Louis van Gaal's first match as Manchester United manager against Swansea at Old Trafford on August 16.